Honey Vanilla Pound Cake

With my new trusty Kitchen Aid mixer at my side, I can now make all kinds of sweet treats! Although, I prefer to make them and give them to others at the moment! This one seemed somewhat healthy and simple, so I thought I would make Steve a sweet treat on Sunday night.

This pound cake was so easy to make and was very yummy. I got the recipe from my Barefoot Contessa, Back to Basics cook book.

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter at cool room temperature (which means, leave it out for about an hour)

1 1/4 cups sugar

4 extra-large eggs at room temperature

2 tablespoons of honey

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 cups sifted cake flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom of an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and then grease and flour the pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, until light. Meanwhile, put the eggs, honey, vanilla and lemon zest in a glass measuring cup, but do not combine. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the egg mixture, one egg at a time, scraping down the bowl and allowing each egg to become incorporated before adding the next egg.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. With the mixer on low speed, add it slowly to the batter until just combined. Finishing mixing the batter with a rubber spatula and pour it into the prepared pan. Smooth the top.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a knife through the center comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes in the pan and then turn out and place on a baking rack to allow it to cool completely.